


The Four Realms

by Pharaoh_Ink



Category: Darkwing Duck (Cartoon 1991)
Genre: F/M, Gen, References to The Nutcracker
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-08
Updated: 2019-12-23
Packaged: 2021-02-25 20:33:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,927
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21711523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pharaoh_Ink/pseuds/Pharaoh_Ink
Summary: Gosalyn Waddlemeyer finds herself transported into a new dimension that her grandfather believed would be revolutionary in his research. But after making her way through it, there's more to this wonderland of snow and Christmas delights than meets the eye. (A crossover between Darkwing Duck and The Nutcracker and the Four Realms that was inspired by a concept and artwork I made a few years ago.)
Relationships: Morgana Macawber/Drake Mallard
Comments: 5
Kudos: 12





	1. The Estate

Christmas Eve marked the one night a year where jovial antics were not only had in abundance, but downright encouraged. The one night a year that was filled with little miracles and tender moments to be remembered for years to come. And most important, the one night a year Gosalyn could spend the most joyous occasion with the one person who understood her the best- Grandfather Waddlemeyer.

A professor at a prestigious university, Dr. Waddlemeyer had been deemed a brilliant man with a handful of unorthodox methods and eccentric ideas, but Gosalyn shared the same wonder and curiosity that he did, at the heart of it all. Though she lived far away, once a year they could make the commute to the annual Christmas party he held. At first it had been a way to end the year with his colleagues and curious journalists who wanted to make note of the achievements and accomplishments made in science, which turned into an exhibit of sorts, and naturally, drew the attentions and crowd of the rest of the population. It was truly a spectacle.

To Gosalyn however, it was about the man behind it all. Her hands pressed against the glass window of their car as it approached the Waddlemeyer estate- large gates, decorated in beautiful garland and lit wreaths. Already there were lines of cars down the long driveway. All lit up, it looked like something out of The Great Gatsby- everyone who was anyone was there to partake in the festivities and wonder that accumulated there.   
  
"Gosalyn, please, fingers off of the window." Came a reprimanding but gentle tone, and Gosalyn rolled her eyes.   
  
"Auntie Harriet, wouldn't it be easier if I just stayed with Grandpa Waddlemeyer all year? We'd have so much fun together, and it'd save you a bunch on gas money, and I could see him all the time..."   
  
"We've already been through this. I know you'd like to live here with your grandfather, and I'm sure he'd love that...but he's a very busy man. He has a lot on his plate. You know he has a lot of important projects he has to work on, and they can be very sensitive and intricate. The last thing he needs is a very rambunctious little girl running around..."   
  
Gosalyn slumped in her seat, crossing her arms over her chest, a deep frown settling over her face as she stared at the back of the driver's seat, burning a hole through it.   
"Grandpa says I'm just _spirited_ is all....he said he LIKES spirited..."   
  
Aunt Harriet sighed, "I know he does, Gosalyn. It's just...it's not a good idea. He can't devote all his time to you, and that wouldn't be fair to either of you. He has his students, and his work, and..."  
  
Gosalyn's expression became more and more sullen, and she finally heaved a loud breath of frustration, resting her chin in her hand and thumping her elbow against the ledge of the window. "...I know, I know."   
  
Aunt Harriet slowed the vehicle to a stop and looked over her shoulder at her, "...Why don't you just think about tonight, Gosalyn? You'll get to spend Christmas with him. I'm afraid that's the best we can do for now. Think about how happy he'll be to see you..." Aunt Harriet tried for a smile, and Gosalyn finally sighed.  
  
"I guess so, yeah..."   
  
Aunt Harriet reached over and gave her a pat on her knee before slipping out of the driver's side, presenting the waiting valet attendant with her key. Gosalyn's door didn't need any further prompting however, as it flew open and the small duckling bounded out of it, the shoes she was forced to wear giving protesting pinches to her feet as they clicked against the cobblestone steps.   
  
"Gosalyn, slow down! It's not a race!" Aunt Harriet's cries were heard but not obeyed as Gosalyn raced up to the front door, throwing it open, the warmth and hues of the interior as inviting as ever.   
  
Almost in every corner of each room, there were some manner of lights or colors hung. She had to push passed the legs of guests to weave her way through, stopping only briefly to marvel at the mechanical wonders on display that were the crowning achievement of past and present.   
  
Hearing his familiar tone in between pockets of conversation, Gosalyn found her grandfather in a small group of his gathered students, and without warning, she pushed passed them to leap onto him. "Grandpa!" "OH-- Gosalyn! Well how's that for an entrance!" He laughed and caught her, swinging her up into the air before squeezing her in a hug. "Oh my dear, I do hope you didn't come up here all by yourself this time! We've been through this before, no driving until you are of legal age!"   
  
Gosalyn laughed, "I know! I swear I didn't hijack the car this time. Auntie Harriet's around. I missed you!" He mussed her hair, "Gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to my most brilliant granddaughter, and successor of all my work- I assure you, not a brighter mind than this one in this coming century!"   
  
Gosalyn elbowed him in his side gently, "Aren't you a lil' biased, grandpa?"   
  
"...Well it's entirely possible. But I think for one night a year, that's acceptable, yes?"   
  
"YEAH!"   
  
"Look who's biased _now._ " Aunt Harriet smiled at the pair as she approached, leaning around the group to give him a hug. "It's nice to see you again."  
  
"Oh, Harriet! You're looking as lovely as ever. Feather extensions? New perfume?" He fished, and she rolled her eyes.   
  
"Now, now, don't go buttering me up in an attempt to convince us all that you know who can stay here for who knows how long." She flashed a knowing glance to Gosalyn, who pulled at her dress collar nervously.   
  
"Why, Harriet! As if I would ever be disingenuous in my compliments! Though now that you've brought it up, I must say that one day a year is hardly grounds for what you might call a visitation! Why, it's about the same amount of time you can leave Christmas pudding out without it spoiling- not at all long enough for bonding, or catching up, or--"   
  
"You've left pudding out for an entire day?" Harriet quirked a brow. "Professor, you can't even leave it out for THAT long. Now if you're leaving out food to spoil, I hardly think that qualifies you to know how to--"  
  
"--- _Shooooow_ me your new inventions, grandpa!" Gosalyn interrupted loudly, tugging on his arm. "You should show me all the new things you built this year!"  
  
"Oh-- well by all means, yes of course! Ehm- perhaps we might continue the discussion later...?" The professor trailed off as he was tugged away through the crowd.   
  
Once a comfortable distance away, Gosalyn heaved a sigh of relief, " _Phew!_ That sure was a close one! We really gotta work on your delivery, grandpa. Auntie Harriet was onto you!"  
  
"You think? Perhaps I _was_ a bit strong."  
  
Gosalyn slowed to a stop, turning around and staring up at him. "She doesn't think you can watch me AND invent at the same time, can you believe it? She just doesn't understand! I could HELP you! You could teach me how your inventions work, and I could help you present them. I wouldn't break everything like she thinks I would...."  
  
At her crestfallen expression, he reached down to tip her chin up. "Nonsense, you're of great help to me always! You help me to remember things, for example! In my maturity, I'm afraid some things have gotten a bit fuzzy up here..." He gestured to his head, chuckling. "And as a matter of fact, my dear...I have such a task for you right at this very moment! Come, come!" He hurried Gosalyn down a hallway to his study, away from the lively noise of the party.  
  
"I am at this very moment at work on a very special project indeed! And I could use your young mind to help me to remember a sequence of combinations that, if correct by my calculations, may alter the very realm of possibility...-" He shut the door and crossed over to his desk, clicking a button on the underside of it to reveal a secret compartment. "-...As we know it!"  
  
Gosalyn sank into one of the chairs, gazing around his askew office, filled with diagrams, charts, messy writing scrawled over them, and looked out over the blueprint he presented her with. Leaning over the desk, she smoothed the scroll out with her hands and squinted down. "What's a _DORMAR_?"   
  
"The name of a very important scientific breakthrough I am on the brink of discovery on! It is a device that in theory can disrupt molecules in the world around us. Calculating the right place to point it however, now that is easier said than done!"  
  
  
"So....so what does it _DO_ though? After you disrupt the molecules."  
  
"Well, again, this is all just in theory, but if you were to hit a particularly weak spot of manifested fabrics of reality, you could encourage a rift to open."  
  
"To _where_?"  
  
"Precisely!" Professor Waddlemeyer cried, "The possibilities would be endless! The great unknown! Nobody knows what could be on the other side. But if my calculations are correct? We finally will!"  
  
"That's...that's amazing, grandpa! Are you planning to present this to everyone?"  
  
"I'd planned to, but I'm afraid I keep forgetting the sequence. If I'm incorrect and the experiment goes wrong in front of them all, I fear I'd be a laughing stock...I might even lose all of my funding for the project, should it prove to them to be a waste of their investment and efforts. But that's where you come in! You can help me to remember...now...let me see here..." He began to rummage through his drawers, pulling out several notebooks and flipping to random pages and murmuring to himself with a furrowed brow.  
  
"Recite after me! Yellow, blue, red, blue, purple, blue, purple, green and yellow. Can you remember all that?"   
  
Gosalyn cocked her head, "Colors? That's your sequence, grandpa? I thought it'd be more... _complicated_ than that!"  
  
"As I said, I'm getting older!" He replied with a grin, "I've got to keep some of this simple if I can help it! The machine has preset commands already embedded, all I've got to do is remember which switch to push at the right time!"   
  
"Oh, well that's easy-peasy then! I'll be able to remember for sure! Yellow....uh....pink---maybe you should just write it down for me, eheh?"  
  
"I'm afraid I couldn't put it in writing, there are always crooks about, ready to steal my life's work and claim the findings for themselves...or worse."  
  
"What's worse, grandpa?"  
  
"...Nothing you need concern yourself with, my dear! Just know that not everyone is always what they seem. Appearances are truly deceiving."   
  
"...I think I understand. You've got to make sure nobody tricks you!"   
  
"Exactly!"  
  
"Well I can remember if you say it again, you can count on me!" Gosalyn stood up in the chair as she proclaimed herself worthy, and he chuckled, picking her up and instead setting her onto the floor.   
  
"I know I can always trust you. _Hmmm._ " The chime to his clock went off, a soft tune ringing out to signal another hour had passed, and he watched the visible gears churn together thoughtfully before turning back to his granddaughter again. "...Why don't we try another way? This will help us both to remember." He took her hands in his own and cleared his throat, beginning, " _Close your eyes, little girl blue. Inside of you lies a rainbow. Yellow, blue, red, blue, purple too, blue, purple, and green, then the yellow.~_ "   
  
Gosalyn smiled when he finished, "That's perfect! Songs always help me to remember too!"   
  
"' _Atta_ girl, I've always said we're two sides of the same coin!"  
  
She threw her arms around him into a hug, "Don't worry, grandpa. I'll make sure you don't mess up."   
  
"Thank you, Gosalyn. Now then, why don't you head out to the party! You didn't come all this way to hole yourself up in my stuffy study, there are sights to be seen, plenty of children to play with! Have fun!" He drew back and pinched her cheeks, to which she swatted playfully at him.  
  
In all honesty, she didn't mind being in a boring study, because to her, nothing her grandfather did was even the slightest bit boring, but she _did_ have trouble staying still for too long. And in some ways, her aunt was right, her grandfather had a lot on his shoulders, especially if he was nervous about what he was going to show everybody.   
  
As she headed for the door, Gosalyn turned around to him, "If it helps, when I have to give presentations in school, I always just imagine everyone has a bucket over their head! If it's someone I don't like, their buckets are filled with worms!"  
  
Professor Waddlemeyer couldn't help but laugh, "Well, I shall try to keep that in mind! Although I don't think worms are in large supply during this cold time of year."  
  
Gosalyn giggled and pushed the door open, heading back out to the party.


	2. The Break

If anyone had a tendency for trouble-making or getting into places where they shouldn't be, Gosalyn had every child in the vicinity beat. Although she didn't mean to stir up mischief on purpose, she couldn't always help her leap before looking tendencies. Especially when other kids were around to encourage it.

The group she'd navigated to had seemed alright at first, some of them being the children who tagged along with their parents who were investors or fellow scientists who worked with Professor Waddlemeyer, but one of them, a very large boy with a messy mop of red hair, seemed to enjoy breaking things rather than enjoying the festivities. As Gosalyn approached, she heard the nasally tone of a smaller boy beside him, who was gathering pieces of the broken decoration together in futile efforts.

"We're guests, you can't just keep breaking things..."

"So what?" The larger boy turned and sneered at him. "This place is boring with a capital B! What else am I supposed to do? Guess I could break YOU if you're offering--" He formed a fist and smacked his palm, and the other boy scrambled away, shaking his head.

"No, no! I'm not offering!"

" _HEY!_ " Gosalyn interjected, eyeing them warily. "What's the big idea! Why don't you pick on someone your own size?"

His nasty expression settled on her, and he stomped right up to her, glaring down, "Oh yeah? You're a little short, but guess I could make an exception--"

Gosalyn didn't back down though, instead lifting her shoe and slamming it down onto his foot, causing him to yelp and hop away, his hands grabbing for it. Losing his balance, he landed onto the floor in a heap, groaning in pain as the other kids began to jeer and laugh.

"The next time you want to break something of my grandfather's, I'm gonna bust you in the beak, got it? Consider this a warning!" Gosalyn stood over him a moment to survey her slice of justice served before turning towards the smaller boy, noticing he was sporting a rather large pair of glasses.

The smaller boy looked on in awe before looking to Gosalyn in an almost sheepish, anxious way, holding out the pile of broken parts to her. "I'm sorry...! He's my brother, he has destructive tendencies."

"You're related to him? I'M sorry." She shook her head, "It's times like these I'm grateful to be an only child."

"Heh. Yeah. I bet it has its perks." He deposited the mess into her open hands. "...I'll uhm, help you fix it, if you want."

"Sure! My grandpa has a work station we can use. I bet we can find glue and stuff there. What's your name anyways? I'm Gosalyn."

"Uhm. Legally, it's Herbert." He winced. "But call me Honker, please."

" _Yikes_." Gosalyn made a face, but quickly clenched her bill together to keep from saying anything too offensive. "That's...rough. Family name?"

He nodded. "After my dad." He looked over to his older brother, who was hobbling away, and nodded towards him. "That's Thomas. But he prefers to go by Tank."

"...Well I don't feel bad for him, since that was a willing decision on his part."

To that, Honker mustered a smile as he followed Gosalyn away from the open area, down a series of hallways.

"So what's it like to be related to such a brilliant professor? Do you get to see all his experiments?"

"Not as often as you think." Gosalyn sighed at the reminder. "We live kinda far away. It's just my auntie and me. We make a special trip out just for Christmas, and then I have to go back...I hate leaving. I wish I never had to leave."

"I don't blame you for not wanting to leave a place like this. If I had a relative like your grandpa..."

Gosalyn navigated to one of the many doors, taking them inside. It was a good sized workspace, with tables, benches, various tools and schematics lining the walls. A large project covered in a tarp was off to the side, probably one of many of his inventions he was still tweaking. She situated herself at the bench, placing the pieces she held onto the table, for the first time was able to notice what it was pieces to.

"...Is this a nutcracker?" She held up what she thought might've been the mouth mechanism.

"Well...it _was_."

She rolled her eyes and turned on the lamp, splaying everything out evenly. "So...what IS your family like? Aside from your brother. Do you have more siblings?"

"Nah, it's just Tank and I. My parents are... _well_...they're not the scientific type, I'll just put it that way. In fact, my whole family is kind of...well, just different." He squeezed his hands together. "They're here mostly because of me. It's extra credit, for my class, to attend this event. And even if it wasn't extra credit, I'd want to come anyway. I love this sort of thing. It's like the world expo!"

"So you live close by?"

"Close enough. Over on Avian Way."

"Lucky. Well. To live so close to here, I mean. Not about your family." She pulled down the magnifier, looking through the wide lens. "...I know what it's like to feel kind of different though. It's why I like coming to see my grandpa, he's the only one that really gets me, you know?"

"Yeah, understandable." Honker watched her fit a few of the pieces together before moving over towards one of the cabinets, "Is there glue in here...?"

"I'm not sure, but it's gotta be close by. Maybe..." Gosalyn pointed to the other side of the room, to a series of drawers, "Try there!"

He shuffled across the room, pulling a few of the drawers open. "...If you don't mind me asking...how come you live with your aunt so far away?"

"My parents died."

Honker exerted too much force onto the drawer, and it slammed shut, causing them both to flinch. Sheepishly, he turned around to her. "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to..."

"...Nah, don't worry about it, you didn't know. It still hurts to talk about it...so it's why I just...don't." The piece she worked together clicked into place. "Anyway, Auntie Harriet is my dad's sister, and she always wanted a kid, but she couldn't have any of her own. I kinda get a feeling I'm not the kid she wanted though."

"What makes you say that?"

"Well...I'm not like Auntie Harriet. She's really quiet, and everything's gotta be perfect with her. I try really hard to not make too much of a mess but...I'm a kid! I can't help it! We're just...too different."

"Like me with my parents." Honker approached cautiously, sliding the tub of glue over to her.

"Guess so." Gosalyn picked up the brush smeared with the stinking liquid and began to dab it over the edges of the pieces, making a face. "Eugh...this stuff better be as strong as it smells!" 

The process took a few minutes, her fingers clamped to the pieces to affix them to the glue she applied, making sure they were steady before she released it. 

"Looks better already, I'd say! He's got character this way." She held the nutcracker up and looked over the cracks, giving a small grin over to Honker as she held it out to him. 

The small duck adjusted his glasses between two fingers, smiling a bit, and he reached out to take it from her. "I guess so. Uhm...I'm sorry, again. It's embarrassing."

"Hey, sometimes you can't pick the people you live with." Gosalyn gave him a small smile in return, though it was slightly sad, and she picked at the splinters of wood that had fallen over her dress. "Take it from me, Honk."

"Guess that's true." Honker glanced down to the floor, shuffling awkwardly for a moment, before looking to her again. "...Well, I'd better go put this back where it was. I'm really looking forward to your grandfather's speech later. I-I hope _uhm_ , nothing else breaks, between then and now." 

"If it does, we know where the glue is, at least." Gosalyn's grin widened, and to that, Honker let out a small laugh of his own, and gave a small wave to her. 

Gosalyn sighed as he left, standing to put the horrid smelling adhesive back away, when she turned towards the tarp and cocked her head down at it. It was large, whatever it was. He had so many projects this time of year, usually, it was near impossible to be able to know every single creative outlet he had his hands in, but here she was, alone in one of his rooms, able to peek for herself, because she had the perk of being related!

Her beak upturned into a smile as she carefully pinched the edge of the tarp, lifting it up slowly. Grandpa had always enjoyed her enthusiastic curiosity towards his work, and she didn't think he'd mind in the slightest if she took a look for herself.

Lo and behold, she nearly dropped the tarp all together from the sheer excitement of her discovery. This wasn't just a project, this was THE project! Her eyes widened, her hands slowly reached out to trace over the coloredj keys and the labeled panel- it was the _DORMAR_ itself, the claim to fame, the one invention he had toiled away on and was hoping to impress his colleagues with, and she had found it all by herself!

She wouldn't claim she completely understood all the science that went behind it, but her grandfather could make anything sound plausible, like anything in the world could happen if you just believed in it hard enough. That, and a little science, he said, was what made magic possible. And it was that belief that made her think of the song he sang, the code he entrusted her with. She had to make absolute sure that everything was perfect before his speech...otherwise! Otherwise, he'd be a laughing stock, and it wouldn't be the first time he hadn't gotten a grant for a special project. Though brilliant, he was not above scrutiny. Gosalyn knew how important this had to be for him.

"I'll just...I'll test it first- yeah! If I make sure it works before Grandpa has to speak, he won't have to worry about pressing the wrong buttons or remembering anything wrong!" Besides, how difficult could it be, he'd chosen colors as switches, after all. She squinted and tried to remember the song- just a quick test run, for quality assurance purposes!

At least she was far enough away, her own singing wasn't nearly as nice as her grandfather's, her voice tended to crack a little, but still the words came, as she gently prompted each switch. By the end of it, she stood back and waited...

And _waited_.

"Oh...maybe I...didn't sing it right?" She frowned and approached again, starting from the top as she pressed down each button extra carefully. 

Still, nothing, no indication that the machine was on or responsive to her prompts. Was it because the color combinations were wrong? Was something wrong with the machine? She couldn't let her grandfather stand up there in front of all of his guests if it didn't work!

"I should tell him before it's too late! Maybe he'll still have a chance to fix it..."

She turned away from the machine and ran off towards the door, the tub of glue still left on the table and the heavy, goopy substance dripping onto the table from the brush still left out.

As she ran down the hall, it had become very dark suddenly then, and it seemed much longer than before. The bright colors and sounds of guests were no where to be found, and as she rounded each corner, she began to realize that something was very, very wrong.

" _Grandpa_...?"

She emerged into the main hall and stood in an empty, dilapidated room.

"Grandpa...? A-aunt Harriet?" Gosalyn's shoes that clattered across the wood floors were the only sound that could be heard now, the manor was completely devoid of guests. 

"What's happening...? Where did everybody go!" She didn't receive an answer, of course, but the more she explored, the more unnerved she became. Not only weren't there any people, as if they'd all just vanished in a poof, everything looked wrong. The tall grandfather clock that stood in the hall's second hand was ticking in the opposite direction. And what's more, her grandfather's house _itself_ was this way- everything in the wrong direction. It was as if she'd been dropped off at another house all together. 

" _Keen gear_ , what's going on...? This can't be real..." She approached the front door, hoping that maybe the crowd had moved outside, that she could find someone, _anyone_ to explain what she was seeing- her grandfather specifically would have been the perfect person, because he always had an explanation for everything, but when she turned the handle and peered out, the steps of her grandfather's estate gave way into a beautiful powered snow below, and not a parked vehicle or person in sight, but a massive forest filled with tall, dark pine trees that rose high into the clouds.

Trees she most definitely knew for a fact did not grow anywhere near Grandpa Waddlemeyer's home.


	3. The Woods

_This couldn't be happening, this couldn't be happening, this couldn't---_

Gosalyn was so sure it _was_ though. The crisp, cool air that hit her cheeks and puffed out of her mouth, the way the soft snow gave way under her feet...there was no way it wasn't real. She felt it. And Grandpa Waddlemeyer had always taught her to trust her senses, if nothing else. Trust her senses and believe anything was possible.  
  
So she was somewhere that was _like_ her grandfather's house, but also _not_ , and in a forest that seemed like a normal forest, except it _wasn't_.  
  
The trees were bigger than any she had ever seen before in her life. They were massive. If you chopped one down, she would bet the other end of it would land in another county all together, if you could even manage to get a saw through the thick trunks.  
  
It was so quiet here, too, she expected maybe a wild animal- a squirrel, a fox, something, but it was just as silent here as it was back in the house, so she wasn't sure which was actually better.  
  
Still, the path through these woods had to lead to somewhere, the whole world couldn't have up and vanished!  
  
It was seeming more and more that way though...especially... _especially_ unsettling was the way she couldn't help but feel that she was being watched, and that was something she couldn't understand. Everywhere she turned was just more of the same- dark trees and snow.   
  
...So why did it seem like someone was following her?  
  
Gosalyn looked down into the powerdery drifts, feeling a pang of nervousness travel up her spine. Someone WAS in this forest with her, there were footprints in the snow! But how! Surely she would be able to see someone standing out among the trees here, and she'd be able to hear the steps!   
  
"A-alright, whoever you are, you've got one second to show your face, otherwise---you'll have to get ready to take on ME, Gosalyn Waddlemeyer! And you definitely don't wanna do that!" She bent down and scooped up enough snow to pack it together. A snowball wasn't much of a weapon, but it was better than nothing at all.  
  
There was a shuffling sound then, she wound her arm up to throw the snowball but nearly dropped it all together in astonishment.   
  
" _HONKER_?!" She gaped at the small duck who pushed his way through the pine needles, holding out his hands nervously.   
  
"Please don't hit me! I-I was just trying to help!"  
  
The snowball slipped out of her hand and she bound up to him, " _KEEN GEAR!_ ~ Boy, am I glad to see a familiar face! Where the heck did everybody go! Something really weird is going on, I think it has to do with grandpa's machine, or maybe I ate too many cookies and passed out and all of this is some crazy dream--" It wouldn't be the first time.  
  
"Uhm...uh. You were going in circles. Which is a real easy thing to do here." Honker adjusted his glasses, peering out at her. "It's the Christmas Tree Woods."  
  
Gosalyn glanced down at the footprints then, shuffling her shoe next to one of them. A perfect fit. So...she was being followed...but she was also following herself. "...Not real creative on names, huh?"   
  
"W-well, _I_ didn't name it. It's real dangerous to be out here if you've never been through it though. The trees change spots, it can get really confusing."  
  
"What the heck's that supposed to mean, Honk? How do you know about this place anyway, I've never seen it before, I know I'm not exactly here all the time, but I know for a fact that grandpa doesn't live next to a forest!"  
  
"Everyone here knows about it. You're not supposed to really walk through this way, but sometimes it can't be helped. Especially now." Honker winced a bit and sighed. "...If you follow me, I can take you to someone who can explain all of it better than I can."  
  
"Uh, like my grandpa? Because he would definitely be able to explain everything right now, plus I really have to tell him something before he gives his big speech. If...if that's even going to still happen..."   
  
"It's someone who can help." Honker assured her, waving a hand to her to follow. "Come on! Before the trees move again..."  
  
"That still doesn't make any sense!" Gosalyn didn't exactly have a better option though- he was the first one she came across out here, and it was cold, and she didn't think the answers she was looking for would be tucked away in the branches of these monstrous trees.   
  
Honker began to lead her through a small trail, though all of it looked the same after a while, and she became more and more disillusioned at following him.   
  
"How do you even know where you're going anyway! You could be just as lost as me!"  
  
"A thread." Honker turned, revealing a long, red string in his hand, giving it a small tug to pull it up from the snow bank. "It's primitive but effective."  
  
"Oh, smart! Kinda like breadcrumbs."  
  
"I tried that once, Spike eats them."  
  
"Who?"  
  
"N-nevermind. The sooner we get out of this forest, the better. You don't want to meet the kind of things that live in it."  
  
Gosalyn wanted to ask what things, but thought better of it. To her, it didn't look like anything at all lived here, but whatever did, she probably _didn't_ want to meet them.  
  
Honker led on, weaving through the thick brush and pokey pine needles until they came across a clearing out of the woods and a quaint cottage that looked straight out of a fairytale.  
  
"Okay, what's the big idea? There are definitely no houses like this back home! Where the heck are we?!"  
  
"Like I said, she'll be able to explain everything to you. I-I tend to get a little nervous in high pressure situations."   
  
"Yeah, I'll say! You were scared of a snowball." Gosalyn jutted out her chin a little, smiling.   
  
"H-hey, it was a big snowball!"  
  
The door is open and the most amazing smell rushes out at them. It's much warmer in here and it's a better alternative to being lost, though Gosalyn can't help but to think of a certain other story where a pair of children wandered through a forest to a small little house that smelled of wonderful treats...  
  
" _Ohhh!_ ~ You're just in time! The sugar plum pie is ready!" A sudden voice snaps Gosalyn out of her thoughts as a woman turns to them with a tray in oven-mitt clad hands. Atop it rests a very delicious looking pie indeed, sprinkled with a crust of fine sugar that makes it downright sparkle.   
  
The woman herself seemed to sparkle too, as she sets the warm pie down onto the countertop, and her dress is one of the prettiest and most elaborate that Gosalyn has ever seen in her life. This woman looked like a princess, that or she was gunning for one's job!  
  
" _Holy moly_...who _are_ you? Do you always dress that fancy?"  
  
"Oh you!" The woman fluffed out her ruffles and giggled, "This old thing? Just a little something for around the house, you're such a sweetheart! As for who I am---" She cleared her throat and shuffled around the counter space, which was more difficult due to the bulk of her dress. She cast off the oven mitts next to the tray and gave a little curtsy.  
  
"My name is Binkie, I'm the Sugar Plum Fairy!~"  
  
Gosalyn blinked up at her, mouth agape for a moment or two before abruptly turning back towards the door, " _Well, it was nice meeting you--_ "  
  
"Oh please don't hurry off so quickly! The pie will get cold, and sugar plums are never as good cold as they are piping hot! And...and, well, it's been so long since we've had a visitor here. It's nice to host someone again!"  
  
Gosalyn turned on her heel, "Listen, you seem like a really nice lady, but I don't just go around accepting pies from strangers! Honker says you can explain everything, but I'm starting to have my doubts..."  
  
"She _can!_ " Honker adjusted his glasses, sheepishly taking a seat nearby.  
  
"Well I can certainly _try_ to explain! What is it you'd like to know, dear?"  
  
"For starters, where the heck are we? I was at my grandfather's house one minute, at a party, and the next thing I know, everyone around me is gone, everything's all backwards, and there's this huge, weird forest out in the middle of no where! Am I dreaming?"  
  
"There, there. It's alright! This place is very much real. I don't quite know how you ended up here either, but you're in the junction of the four realms."  
  
"The four _what_?"  
  
"This is the _Land of Sweets_!" Binkie gestured out her window, a cobblestone path leading up towards a small, but lively village with shops, filled to the brim with delectable delights.   
  
"Our resident forest sprite gives us the most wonderful plums! They're perfect. So long as you stay out of his woods, of course. If not, he can be a little...temperamental."   
  
" _The Christmas Tree Woods_?" Gosalyn glanced back towards the door. "So _that's_ what's in there? A sprite doesn't sound so bad."  
  
" _Mmyes_ , well I'm not certain what the sprites are like where you're from...what did you say your name was again, dear? But here, he can be a tad _irritable_ , shall we put it. He's very kind to his plants, but not so much with people."  
  
"Is his name Spike?" Gosalyn casted a knowing glance to Honker, who shifted in his seat. "And...the name's Gosalyn, by the way. Gosalyn Waddlemeyer."  
  
"A pleasure to meet you, Gosalyn Waddlemeyer! My, that is quite a name!" She smiled then, giggling a little, "And no, Spike is the name of his pet! Our sprite calls himself Reginald."  
  
"Reginald?" Gosalyn looked surprised. "Fancy. Well...so, how come you all can't just grow your own food? Why do you need it from him?"  
  
"There's a terrible curse across these lands..." Binkie sighed, turning towards the pie again, beginning to cut into it now that it had cooled a bit. "A frost that has wiped out the crops, kept everyone isolated. You can scarcely get around the kingdom, and Reginald doesn't like the increase in visitors to his forest, it makes him nervous. So many people have gotten lost in there. I'm glad that you didn't!"  
  
"Huh. Well. Guess that's thanks to Honk. Thanks, by the way."   
  
Honker smiled, "I couldn't just leave you out there."  
  
"You went into those woods by yourself?" Binkie looked surprised as she handed over a piece of pie to Honker, "Oh, I am so proud of you! You were so very brave to do that! Such a good boy."  
  
"Wait, so...what's this curse thing all about?" Gosalyn's interest had been piqued. Dream or no dream, it was entertaining at the very least.   
Binkie handed her a slice next, "Oh. It's terrible!" She shook her head. "Awful, really! Our wonderful prince has been...stolen from us! He ruled the lands justly, and he looked so dashing in his helmet and cape--"  
  
" _Moooom._ " Honker groaned a little, prodding into his pie with a fork.   
  
"Y-yes, erm, anywho!~ One day he just vanished into thin air, and nobody knew what became of him! Some suspected FOWL play! Others think he just abandoned us..." Binkie looked crestfallen. "But I can't believe a man as good as he was would just leave us that way. I think something terrible must have happened. Either way, the woman who was smitten with him was devastated at his sudden disappearance. Out of heartbreak, she cast a horrible spell that froze over the castle, it now sits on a mountain of ice and frigid cold that no one can traverse and live! It's all so dramatic and despairing, really."  
  
Gosalyn's cheeks puffed out with the pie as she nodded. "Yeah, sounds it! So who's the hero?"  
  
"...Pardon, dear?"  
  
"Well if you're gonna have a fairytale like that, there's always a hero that steps up and storms the castle, and fixes everything, and breaks the curse!"  
  
"O-oh. Well." Binkie clasped her hands together, her head dipping. "I'm afraid we don't have one. No one's volunteered."  
  
"But why?!"  
  
"...I don't think anyone knows quite where to start. They're all afraid, Gosalyn. They need their prince."  
  
"Well no one's gonna find him if they don't try to look! There's gotta be somewhere other than the forest that people can cut through..."  
  
"There is." Honker set his fork down against his plate. "But...uhm...you don't wanna go there either."  
  
"What is it?"  
  
Honker and Binkie exchanged nervous looking glances, before she replied, " _The Land of Amusement."_  
  
"...Sounds..." Gosalyn cocked her head. "... _Terrifying?_ "  
  
"It used to be a place everyone in the kingdom lined up for. So many spectacles! People came from all over to share their inventions-"  
  
"Inventions!" Gosalyn's eyes lit up, and she set her clean plate down, "Maybe grandpa is there!"  
  
" _Well it's-_ -"  
  
"He might be there right now! I've got to find him and tell him about his machine, before it's too late!"  
  
"Gosalyn, I don't know if your grandfather is there, but you should be careful!" Binkie clasped her hands together. "It's not safe!"  
  
"Maybe not, but I've got to find him. And who knows, I just might find the prince too!" Gosalyn grinned, and for a moment, Binkie's worried expression turned amused.   
  
"...You certainly do have a lot of spirit, don't you! It's nice to see someone so full of life after everything that's happened here to us. Perhaps I can't change your mind, but at least--" Binkie shuffled awkwardly around the counter again, gathering together a few confectioneries and another piece of pie, wrapping it up for her and scurrying back around to hand it over. "Take these with you, for the trip!"  
  
"Wow, thanks!" Gosalyn took the offering and carefully slipped it into one of her dress pockets. "...You make really good pie. Way better than any pie I've ever tasted."  
  
"Oh you!~ It's all the plums, I just give them a little sprinkling is all!" She waved her fingers, sparkles appearing in the air.   
  
Honker slipped from his chair and deposited his own plate atop Gosalyn's, "I'll show you the way. If you're really set on going, that is."  
  
Gosalyn nodded, "I'll never find him by staying here."  
  
"If you're sure..."  
  
"Of course I'm sure. I'm never _not_ sure." She looked up to Binkie again, "Thanks for the goodies!"  
  
"Of course, dear, please take care. My home is open to you anytime! I hope you're able to find your grandfather."  
  
"Me too..." Gosalyn stepped out of the warm abode and back into the snow, Honker at her heel. She still didn't quite understand how she'd managed to travel here, but she knew once she found him, he'd be able to explain everything to her in a way that made sense, he knew everything there was to know, and when he didn't know, he dedicated himself to finding out.  
  
He'd fix everything.


	4. The Park

Winding through the streets of the quaint little town, Gosalyn couldn't help but ogle some of the treats sitting in the bakery windows, everything here looked and smelled so good! No wonder it was called the Land of Sweets, as Binkie referred to it. Everything here was a kid's dream come true! And a parent's sugar fueled nightmare.

Soon they came to the last row of the colorful and cute buildings, back out into the cold, the clearing leading to a much less formidable looking forest of trees, and a simple trail. Just how big _was_ this place, anyway...?  
  
"How far is the...uh, what'd ya call it again...?"  
  
"The _Land of Amusement?_ " Honker sniffled, "Not too far. But there's no reason to go there. No good reason, anyway."  
  
"Whaddya mean no good reason? It has amusement right in the name! What's so bad about seeing everyone's inventions? I thought you liked that sorta thing!"  
  
"I loved seeing the shows every year, they were...well, magnificent." Honker beamed wistfully. "Inventors from all over came together to show off their inventions. A lot of them were meant to improve the kingdom, but since the prince vanished, all of the great thinkers have seemingly just, vanished with him. It's like..."  
  
"They lost their spirit." Gosalyn understood what it felt like, to lose something. The world felt a little different after. A little darker.   
  
"...Yeah. I guess everyone did. And...since it's gotten so cold...a lot of people have gotten separated..."  
  
The young boy turned to look at her then, his eyes a bit wet from under his shining glasses, and he moved a hand under them to rub at one. "I always complained that they didn't understand me, but...I never wanted them to _disappear._ "  
  
Gosalyn tilted her head, "...Who?"  
  
"...My dad and my brother. They're still out there in the cold, somewhere, I'm sure of it. I just...have no idea of knowing where."  
  
She was quiet for a moment, and suddenly his reason for being out in the _Christmas Tree Woods_ to begin with made a lot more sense, and a determined look settled over her face, She reached out, settling a hand against his shoulder. "Hey, don't worry about it! We're gonna find all of them, my grandpa, the rest of your family, this prince guy- just trust me! I won't give up."  
  
"Thanks, Gosalyn..." Honker seemed taken aback, surprised at how a newcomer here could just step into the role of hero so quickly. No one had ever offered to do anything for him before, much less take up a quest like looking for his lost family.   
  
The gesture made the cold journey a bit warmer, as they headed down the trail.

* * *

This forest they cut through was smaller, but not any less creepy than the first. Their trip wasn't long, as Honker had said, but Gosalyn could now understand why nobody came here. The sign that loudly proclaimed their destination was now tilting, the gates rusting and giving way at the entrance.   
  
Gosalyn could recognize what was once a ticket booth, with glass now stained and cracked in some of the panes. After that came booths that might've once sold popcorn, roasted and candied almonds, she could practically smell the remnants in the air, but now? Nothing.  
  
What looked to be an old Merry-Go-Round stood nearby, and it wasn't like the ones at the malls that Gosalyn would walk passed and snub her beak at when Aunt Harriet asked her if she wanted to ride, because those were for _babies_. This one looked like it was legitimately something beautiful in its heyday, because each horse looked like it was hand carved and painted, with beautiful inset stones for the eyes and across the reigns. Now it sat rusted and unused, no children around to appreciate it for miles. What good was it now?  
  
There were similar rides that sat around it in similar decay, and Gosalyn felt a shiver run down her back. " _Yeesh_ this place gives me the creeps!"  
  
"I'll say." Honker affirmed. "It used to be really fun, they had all sorts of mechanical wonders here. Now it's just a _wasteland_. It's just a good thing that Mr. Yensid isn't around to see what's become of it..."  
  
"Who's that?"  
  
"Oh, he's the man that came up with the design of this park. And he also hosted the yearly events, he always really liked seeing what inventors came up with. I always wanted to join, but...but then...well, the prince went missing, and half the kingdom with him, including Mr. Yensid. There's no one left."  
  
"Geez! We've really got to whip this place back into shape, it's a good thing I came along when I did..."  
  
It was starting to look more and more likely though, that her grandpa might not have been here after all. No inventors, no life here. She turned and noticed a large big top tent in the center of the park.  
  
Well it was a longshot, but she had to at least say she'd explored every inch of this place before moving elsewhere.  
  
She parted the flaps of the tent and peered inside. It was dark here too, but she was surprised to see that most of the large space was filled to the brim with piles of what looked like scraps from the park. She stepped around the heaps, not able to make out much, and Honker followed after her timidly.   
  
"Well they're never gonna get people back here if they can't even get someone to clean up the place...it's filled with garbage!" Gosalyn commented offhandedly, just as Honker tripped over a rod sticking out into their makeshift path and he landed into the heap of metal that jostled from his fall.  
  
"Honk, you okay back there?"   
  
He drew himself up and adjusted his glasses back into place, his brow furrowing as he peered down over the junk he laid over.  
  
"...Gosalyn, I don't think this is garbage..."

"I can barely see anything, you'd think there'd be a light or--" Gosalyn stumbled into a large disc in the center of the big-top and took a moment to reach around the base, "Well there's a bright idea--" Her fingers grazed over a switch and she clicked it, the light illuminating the tent, along with her imposed shadow. She fell back from it and rubbed across her eyes. " _Keen gear_! If I ran this place, I'd definitely invent a light switch that's way less hassle!"

Honker lifted the scrapped metal into his hands and squinted over the writing, " _Aloysius J. Mandelbaum_...! He was one of the inventors from a few months ago, I remember his presentation! It was for--"

Suddenly, a set of spiral stairs began to unfurl from the rafters, sliding around the candy-cane patterned support pole before coming to a rattling stop. Gosalyn and Honker peered up at the newly moved mechanism, towards the hole they could now see in the ceiling, and Gosalyn blinked the stars out of her eyes. 

" _Ooooohhhhh_ , what's _thiiiiiis_?~ Sounds like someone's looking for a free show!~" The abrupt, excited voice nearly made the kids jump out of their skin- they hadn't expected anyone to still be here!

Bounding down the steps came the sound of bells, the source of which became very clear to them as they saw them clattering together from the ends of a very large jester's hat, the wearer dressed from head to toe in dark, rich colors and ornate patterns, hopping until he came to the very last stair, and he leaned out, a hand curled around one of the metal spokes of the stairway. 

"OH!~ And lookie here, I was right!" The man was large and goofy looking, with a prominent overbite filled with teeth that shone out at them, and an excited looking gaze that bordered on unsettling. 

"Uh..." Gosalyn was the first to speak, or attempt to. "Hello! We were just uh...just looking around! I was trying to find someone, and I thought they'd be here..."

"Well you came to the right place!" The man cried, holding out his arms, "You found me! Here I am!"

"Uhh, no. I was looking for my grandpa. He's a pretty famous inventor, I just thought maybe he might've ended up here-"

"An inventor!" The man's eyes shone brightly, "Well ya don't say! I'm a bit of an inventor myself, you know! Oh, you should come up and see! It'll be well worth the price of admission!~"

"Gos..." Honker started, looking uncertain as he held the Mandelbaum piece between his fingers. 

"We really should be going, I have to find him before things get any weirder. Maybe some other time...?" 

"Well why didn't ya say so! You're in a rush, I get it! So much to see, so little to do-- wait..." He laughed, waving a hand, "Come on up and see for yourself, you might find the inventor you're looking for!"

Honker and Gosalyn exchanged looks. "So wait, they're all _here_?"

"Sure are!" The man grinned, "We've been holed up here since ol' _frigid witch_ waved her little fingers and cast her enchantment across the land- these poor old parts weren't built to operate in below zero weather!"

All the inventors were here then, the whole time? Surely then, they must have been working out a way to find the prince, to set everything right again. Maybe her grandpa had gotten swept up in it all too and had wanted to help. They really were two sides of the same coin.

"Come on kids, no use in waiting down here in the dumps! HAH! Get it! It's a literal scrap heap down here!" The man laughed and began to bounce up the stairs, "Come on, come on!~ We have _coooompaaaany_!~"

"Gosalyn, I don't know about this, it doesn't seem-..." 

"I know, he's a little wacky." Gosalyn made a face, "But this is the first person we've seen out here, and if there's a chance grandpa is here, I have to see for myself! Besides, don't you want to see if Mr. Yensid's here too?"

"Of course..." Honker sighed a little. It wasn't that he didn't care, he just had a bad feeling about the whole thing.

"Come on." She nudged at him and gave him a winning smile, and soon, she was up the stairs, following the jester. Honker finally relented and set the piece of metal down, trudging up after them.

Gosalyn emerged into the upstairs, there were colorful strings of lights strewn across the rafters that held up the tent, and toys of all sizes and sorts imaginable. She couldn't help but be amazed for a moment, she'd never seen so many in one place before!

"Whoa, it's like Santa's workshop or something, we hit the motherload!"

"Santa?! HAH! As if that hack could hold a candle to me- you know he outsources all his toy making to South Pole elves, right? Not even local anymore! What is the world we live in coming to?!" He spun to a stop in front of the pair, "So! What kinds of toys do you like?! If I don't have it, I can make it, I'm sure!"

"Uhhh, well! All kinds really! What did you...uh, say your name was, anyway?"

"Me? You haven't heard of ME?!" He pulled the ends of his hat, his lip becoming a pout momentarily. "Why, I'm the royal toymaker, Quackerjack! Appointed by the _King_ himself!"

"King? I thought there was a prince...you know, the whole sudden disappearance act and everyone freaking out about it." 

"OH! Uh, well sure! But ah, you know, royal lines and all, there's always someone else there to pick up the slack! Ruling with an iron fist and all." He laughed, a puppet sliding over his shoulder and shaking a fist for good measure. 

" _That's sure right, Dwight!~_ "

"Oh, and where are my manners! This is my esteemed colleague, Professor Banana Brain! A genius in toys, but not in much else."

"Heh...yeah..." Gosalyn's eyes shifted around the piles of toys and the workbench with a light still on from where he must have been seated away, working, prior to their arrival. But there was nothing else. Not another soul here.

"So...so you said the others were here. Where are they...?" 

To that, a slow grin spread across the man's mouth, his eyes becoming lidded. "Oh. They're _around._ "

" _Uh-huh_..." Gosalyn's excitement from earlier was starting to dwindle, replaced by unease, and her eyes scanned distractedly against the piles of toys around them until something familiar caught her eye.

"H-hey!" She reached out, digging it out. It was a purple nutcracker. But it couldn't be! It just couldn't be---

She zeroed in on the crack there, from where she'd carefully held the pieces together herself. She knew this was no mere coincidence!

"This is my grandfather's nutcracker!" Her eyes snapped up to Quackerjack's, narrowing with her accusation. "Why do YOU have it?"

Quackerjack's smile slipped off of his face as his eyes flickered over the wooden figure clutched in her arms, and he snarled. "You put that down right now!"

"No! I know this is his, so he must be here! Where is he? Where is everyone?!"

"Okay, _okay!_ ~" Quackerjack soothed suddenly then, his grin returning, but it was hardly genuine as he slowly stepped closer, holding up his hands, "I'll tell you where they are!~ And then you just put that right back where you found it, alright, sweetie?~" 

To Honker, he gestured with a tilt of his head, his hat ringing melodically, "In fact, little man---right about where you're standing, if you reach _juuuuuust_ to the left of you, you'll find someone you'll probably recognize!"

Honker frowned and reached out, grabbing the end of something sticking out of the other toys, and he gave a sharp yank, gasping in surprise as he looked it over. It was a doll, but not just any doll, an outright perfect replica of Mr. Yensid himself! Mustache and all!

"O-oh, uhm...i-it's a rather nice likeness of him, M-Mr. Quackerjack..."

Quackerjack's grin became sharp. "Oh. That's no likeness. I'm afraid that IS our dear Mr. Yensid. You see, I have a certain...let's call it _talent!_ Curse sounds so negative. What I do is- I take someone, _any_ someone, doesn't have to be special, and I reach over and give them just a little poke..." He stabbed his finger into air for demonstration, "And they turn into little dolls! Can you imagine that?! Why this whole park just became nothing but toys in minutes flat!" He laughed, an off-kilter sound, and Gosalyn felt horrified at the mounds she'd just previously ogled at around them. These were all PEOPLE?!

"Where is my grandpa?" She tried again, her gaze angry, and though she was a little fearful at what this man claimed he had the power to do, she refused to back down. 

"I couldn't possibly keep track of every single person that's ended up here!" He looked amused. " _Buuuuut_...you're welcome to stay until you can find him!~" He took another menacing step towards them, " _-Which you never will, Bill!~_ " Professor Banana Brain piped up from his place on the toymaker's shoulder.

He made to pounce for them, but Gosalyn moved, grabbing Honker by the hand, and she kicked out a few of the toys from one of the piles, sending it toppling down over him as she ran down the stairs.

" _YOU LITTLE BRATS!_ " Came the toymaker's scream, which only made Gosalyn run faster as she felt her heel connect with the floor of the tent, and she began to weave back through the piles of what Honker now realized were inventions that had been left behind- he must have torn them all to shreds. Now no one could use them! But why?!

What came down the stairs after them wasn't a man, but a large box, and Honker let out a cry as he turned around to catch a look at it as it bounced right towards them. 

"Gosalyn!~ We have to get out of here!"

"Not without grandpa!" Gosalyn yelled back, the purple nutcracker still clutched tightly in her other arm. The idea of him being turned into a toy, resting amidst the piles of marionettes and stuffed abominations up there, all alone- it made her stomach twist.

The box sprang into the air suddenly then and sailed down, landing directly on top of Honker, causing their hands to break apart. 

" _HONKER_!" She turned and cried out to him, the the lid of the box popped open, the toymaker coiling out of it with a cruel grin as he leaned over the boy now trapped beneath. 

"G-go on, Gos, it'll be okay! Just find your grand---....!" Honker's bespectacled eyes became nothing more than shining buttons then, his form sagging lifelessly into a sewn husk filled with sawdust.

Gosalyn's eyes widened in pure horror, and she ran through the flaps of the tent, ran out into the middle of the park, which began to light up- half of parts jerking to move properly, the sound of out of tune music warbling through the mechanisms a far cry from the happiest place in the realms. She continued to run until the only thing she could hear was the sound of manic laughter ringing in her ears, like bells, and she was ready to wake up from this nightmare.

She wanted to go _home._


End file.
